House Passes Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension, On To The Senate

The extension of the home buyer tax credit has passed the U.S. House of Representatives, and will move on to the Senate. The bill allows for an additional three months for buyers who are currently under contract to close out their transactions. No new home buyers will be included in the tax credit.

The bill is lumped in with an unemployment benefits extension, which has caused much more debate over the issue (the tax credit itself is overwhelmingly popular with legislators). If you thought this was a straightforward issue, just read the comments received on the last few posts on the tax credit. There are some strong opinions on both sides.

Excerpt:

AP Article:
Homebuyers would get an extra three months to complete their purchases and qualify for a generous tax credit under a bill overwhelmingly passed by the House on Tuesday.

Under current law, homebuyers who signed purchase agreements by April 30 have until Wednesday to close on the sale to qualify for tax credits of up to $8,000. The bill would give buyers until Sept. 30 to complete their purchases.

The extended deadline only applies to people who signed purchase agreements by April 30. The National Association of Realtors estimates that about 180,000 homebuyers who already signed purchase agreements are likely to miss the Wednesday deadline.

“We owe this to the people who have essentially followed the rules who are caught by a closing date,” said Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

The bill passed 409-5. It now goes to the Senate, where senators were working Tuesday evening on a bill that would extend the tax credit and extend unemployment benefits for workers who have been laid off for long stretches.

The Senate could vote on its bill as early as this week — if senators can round up 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.

The popular tax credit has helped to stabilize the nation’s slumping housing market. Nearly 3 million taxpayers claimed the tax credit through May 22 — claiming more than $21 billion — according to the Treasury Department.

The Realtors group says the tax credit has generated 1 million new home sales that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

Sam DeBord is a Realtor and real estate broker with SeattleHome.com, a division of Washington State Realty, LLC. He is a member of the Seattle-King County Association of Realtors and a Green-Certified Pro.

Have a question about a specific home, or Seattle real estate in general?Sam can be contacted at (206) 658-3225 or Sam(at)SeattleHome.com.